"He seemed nice enough, but I didn’t know them very well as a couple. Although he was always there..."

The couple have reportedly split (Image: Ian West/PA)

It has been claimed that Cheryl has started divorce proceedings against her French husband - with reports saying they actually ended their marriage five months ago.

An insider told the Sunday People: "In the end Cheryl realised she had married too soon and had been swept away by a bit of a whirlwind romance.

"Over time it became clear to each of them that they were very different people and from very different worlds.

They married in July 2014

"They are now focusing on making sure they stay friends. The divorce is amicable and they have both said they will always be there for each other."

The pair were last seen together in public in October – hand-in-hand at the joint 40th birthday bash for I’m A Celeb hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly. Fans saw it as a united front but in reality the relationship had ended two months earlier and the pair attended the party together as close friends.

Cheryl and Jean-Bernard married on the island of Mustique in July 2014.